Girls Camp

Mom took everyone on a hike! 

Mom went to Girls Camp for the 4th year in a row. She loves to spend time with the girls and it was a fun year since she was the assistant again. She enjoyed being the camp chef, and letting Sister Driggs be in charge of everything. It was also fun to go with the new ward and get to know all these girls.

Mom was sad to miss a lot of baseball games because both Mark and Dax's teams kept winning in the city tournament, but Dad kept her up to date and managed to make it to all the games without a cell phone!

Girls Camp was up by Scofield Reservoir, so we spent one afternoon canoeing, and we spent lots of time playing games and getting to know once another better. There were lots of late giggly nights! Mom's favorite part was when Dad came up for the evening. He got to kick off testimony meeting as the Bishop, but he also could sit by Mom and hold her hand. It was a great way to end Girls Camp. And Mom has been released so she gets at least a one year break!

Mom loves these ladies! They are good girls! 

We try to take crazy pictures at camp!

Someone made this Reeses Smore for Mom, and it was the best thing she had ever had!

We hiked near Scofield Reservoir and found this fun bridge! 

Dad and Mom spotted this Snowshoe Hare together.

It was so fun that Dad could visit Mom at camp!

Cedar City Day 4

This was one of the best hikes we have ever done!

We had to be home for Church meetings and baseball practice by seven o'clock, so we only had one adventure in mind for our last day. After breakfast and packing up the van we headed south to Kanarraville. We've wanted to do the Kanarraville Falls hike with its slot canyons, ladders, and frigid water for a long time, but we wondered if the boys were big enough. Today was the day to try it.

The hike costs $9/person, but it really was worth it. The trail is right in the creek bottom, and at first we leaped over, hopped on rocks, or tightroped the shore. But after a little while, we tromped right down through the ankle deep water because it was easier and much more refreshing.

Farther along, we came to some deeper pools. The water came up almost to Dad's waist, but that was Seth's armpits, so he got the wettest. Dax, who is always freezing anyway, had the hardest time with the cold water. But everyone loved this hike. There were smiles and laughter for most of the trip.

We came to the first ladder and waterfall after about a mile. We scampered right up, even though it was a little intimidating. Coming down backwards was much worse. Dad stood alongside the ladder, and Seth was near tears on the way down. The slots were beautiful, though, and it was really fun getting wet. When we got to the second, rickety ladder, we decided that we'd pushed far enough. We took a few pictures and turned back. This made it a four mile hike, which was plenty.

We decided to take the risk and hike. It was worth it!

The boys were so excited to hike in the water. 

Dad is such a great helper with obstacles along the trail. 

We saw lots of lizards on this hike.

These three are the best hikers! Pretty cute, too!

We stayed pretty dry the first half of the hike. 

We also saw a few different butterflies. Mom prefers them over lizards.  

Dad decided to hike in his swim trunks, which was very smart. 

Dad and Seth braved the river a lot sooner than the rest of us. 

We finally took the plunge and hiked in the river.  

The slot canyon section of the hike was beautiful. 

Dad took some great pictures with the sunlight streaming in.  

We passed many waterfalls along this hike. This was the first one. 

It was fun to stand right at the top of the waterfall. 

This was one of the deepest obstacles we faced. 

Lots of people use this waterfall as a slide. Mom was just happy she could climb the rocks and not fall. 

Look at how gorgeous that slot canyon is. So amazing!

The water in the slot canyon got really deep and was freezing! 

Seth was drenched, and Dax tried to keep his shorts dry. It didn't last much longer than this. 

This is where we turned around because the ladder was very sketchy.  

We loved seeing Dax and Seth giggle as they hiked through this deep water. 

Dax found a rock that looked like a heart. 

This beautiful swallowtail flew past us in the river.  

We also saw a collared lizard which was so pretty. 

We had a little time for lunch on the way home, so we stopped in Beaver at the Timberline Restaurant. The food was really good. In fact, we ended with a homemade cinnamon roll. It was so good that we ordered a second one. It made up for the terrible experience in Parowan. Cedar City was a short vacation, but it was still a lot of fun.

Mom loved her sandwich. It was delicious!

Dad loved his cinnamon roll...and so did everyone else!

Cedar City Day 3

We all slept in and Mom made waffles for breakfast. We didn't end up leaving the apartment until ten o'clock when we headed for a local park. The boys enjoyed chasing and running with Dad. Mom even timed them as they ran to the top of the triple story playground and slid down the large slide.

The boys loved climbing to the top of this pyramid. 

They also loved this spinning toy!

Next we drove up to Parowan. This small town is all about history and there were several things we wanted to check out. After stopping at the Visitor Center we headed out to the Parowan Gap west of town. It is a pretty amazing cut in the mountain that is just wide enough for the road. Best of all, there are dinosaur tracks and petroglyphs in the area. We counted three dinosaur tracks, but there were hundreds of petroglyphs. As we walked back and forth through the gap we passed etchings of animals, patterns, people, and other stories. Modern Pauites have interpreted the drawings, and the signs around the petroglyphs tell the story. It was really fascinating.

The dinosaur tracks were so cool!

We found a small tunnel to crawl through!

Mark's face is so funny! 

We were amazed at all the petroglyphs. 

We wandered around for quite awhile checking out all the drawings.

We had lunch at a park back in Parowan. Mom made sandwiches while Dad pushed the boys on the ancient swings. We ate in the shadow of the Old Rock Church, which was built by the Pioneers, but now serves as a DUP museum. Inside we enjoyed all the old butter churns, pictures, and tools from over a hundred years ago. The church itself was built in the same style as other tabernacles we've seen, including a balcony with stairs on two sides, but this one was much smaller. The podium stood almost in the middle of the building.

We have gotten really great at picnic lunches. 

Dad had a lot of fun on the swings! 

Dax decided to jump off!

Then Mark did, too!

The Old Rock Church was neat on the outside, and interesting on the inside.

Parowan is supposed to be famous for cinnamon rolls, so we decided to stop and try some. The first place we went was all out, so we tried a second restaurant. This was a mistake, because their cinnamon rolls were utterly flavorless. After a few bites, Mom and Dad abandoned them entirely. It was a major disappointment, so we'll have to try some other restaurant in Parowan.

We didn't love our treats, but we still had fun together. 

There were two other historical stops in Parowan. One was an outdoor museum, and we wandered around among the old tractors. Dad explained which was a harrow, potato harvester, or combine. The other was a tribute to the settlers or this area. It included the flagpole that was placed by Parley P Pratt and claimed that most of southern Utah's towns were settled from Parowan, which was settled very early in 1851 just a few years after the Saints arrived in Utah.

We love learning about the pioneers.  

Dad loves talking about the old farm equipment. 

We got back to Cedar City at about four o'clock and decided it was time to do something the boys wanted to do. "So we're going to the pool?" Dax asked, and he was right. We took the boys to the local aquatic center. Then we played and splashed both indoors and out for nearly two hours.

Dax loved how fast this slide was!

Seth and Dad went around the lazy river A LOT of times! 

Dax is brave and does front flips off the diving board. 

Mark is also brave and jumps off the diving board without the flips.

Seth loved playing basketball with a little help from Dad.

It had been a long day, so after dinner in the apartment, we let the boys watch a movie. Then we went to bed early. We'd about worn ourselves, and Cedar City out!